RIO DE JANEIRO, Nov. 18 (Xinhua) -- Brazil, a main target of cyber surveillance by U.S. intelligence agencies, will host an international conference on internet governance in April, government officials said Monday.

Government authorities, business representatives, and nongovernmental organizations are expected to gather in the Brazil 's largest city, Sao Paulo, from April 23-24, announced Foreign Minister Luiz Alberto Figueiredo, together with Communications Minister Paulo Bernardo and Science, Technology and Innovation Minister Marco Antonio Raupp, at a press conference.

"All stakeholders and sectors directly linked to the internet -- governments, businesses, academia, civil society -- will have a broad discussion at the conference," said Figueiredo, who believed Brazil is "acting for the international protection of human rights. "

The revelations made by former U.S. National Security Agency contractor Edward Snowden that U.S. agencies snooped on phone calls and e-mail data of Brazilian President Dilma Rousseff and other world leaders, as well as on its state-run oil giant Petrobras, have prompted Brazil to campaign for better global governance of the internet and digital services.

The incident has strained Brazil's ties with the United States, prompting Rousseff to cancel a scheduled state visit to the United States last month.